By Bill Leonard When Jim Crow segregation laws ruled the American South, their classic defense lay in the phrase, “Separate but Equal,” meaning that while the races were divided, their facilities and services were supposedly the same. Of course everybody…
Trust the people
By Mike Smith Few words spark more immediate anxiety in a pastor than, “Preacher, we’ve found a great book, and we’re going to get a group together and teach it.” This came home when two women informed me they were…
Out of the mouths of babes
By Amy Butler I have a secret fear of children’s sermons, largely because, even though you are leading the time, you really have no control over the situation at all. Case in point: I had to do the children’s sermon…
The J word
By Bill Wilson I cannot stand this word and what it represents. I hear it far too often. It represents an attitude that should be banned from local church life. It is the word just. As in, “I’m just a…
When you pastor the Titanic
By Bill Wilson What if you knew that your congregation was on a collision course with its demise? What would you do? Who would you tell? How would it change the way you lead? Would it affect your sense of…
No tweet time
By Natalie Aho People say the wrong thing on social networking sites all the time. After an interview at Cisco Systems, Connor Riley (aka @theconnor) confessed in a tweet: “Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh…
Green as a cabbage patch
By Bill Leonard Forty years ago this fall I became pastor of First Community Church in Southborough, Mass. I actually started as their interim pastor and wound up staying four years. It was a great place for one who had…
A pastor’s prayer for pastors
By Barry Howard This prayer was offered at the Mercer Preaching Consultation on St. Simon’s Island, Ga., on Sept. 26, 2011. Gracious God, I come to you as a pastor praying for pastors. I pray for all men and women…